Drawings
by Kaiju Moth
Summary: While cleaning up the common room, Raven stumbles upon certain item of Beast Boy's, and ends up learning some things about the changeling she never knew. [BBxRae oneshot]


Yet another oneshot I decided to do on a whim! I figure with all the time I have to write, why not:P More BBxRae goodness for all you shippers out there. I was going to work on the next chapter to my other story, but decided to get this one out before I lost the idea. It's not _really_ a romance fic, mostly implied fluffiness, but I hope you like it.

By the way, Merry Christmas, everyone!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

* * *

**Drawings**

The bright afternoon sun sifted through the windows of Titan's Tower. The sunlit day was about as normal for Jump City as it got, but for the Titans it was the day everyone dreaded the most –

Cleaning day.

With the temporary decrease in crime activity and extra time, Robin had decided it would be a wonderful opportunity to clean up the Tower. The workload had as usual been distributed evenly amongst the five of them. Each one of course would have to clean up his or her own room (not that anyone would even go near Beast Boy's room to begin with) and the rest of the Tower was divided equally among them.

Raven groaned and used her black energy to rearrange and organize the scattered objects littered among the common room. Much to her luck (or lack of) she had been stuck cleaning the common room for the second time in a row. Normally she wouldn't have minded, but today the room seemed to be particularly messy. It almost was as if someone had thrown a party in there the night before and left it in a heap. Random objects and belongings were littered everywhere – even Robin, who was usually one of the more responsible members of the team, had left several of his own things lying around. As if that wasn't enough, the couches and chairs were all in a disheveled mess and several old items of food had somehow managed to remain there for days without being thrown away. In fact, probably the only person who wasn't responsible for the mess in there was Raven.

Oh, the irony.

As much as she disliked it, Raven was forced to suck it up and clean up the pigsty known as the common room. She was already done with everything else, and once she was finished with this room she'd be done for the day.

The empath had taken up the tedious task of organizing everyone's junk into separate piles so they could sort through them later. As was to be expected, the person with the biggest pile was Beast Boy. Sometimes Raven wondered if he was always this disorganized or if it was just a side affect of the animal DNA.

After what seemed like ages of cleaning, the room finally looked livable by normal human standards once again. Raven picked up a straggling Gamestation controller and put it away and looked around for more junk. Everything looked to be in order, and Raven finally went about the tedious task of dusting. Finally she put the duster down and gave the room one last survey. It seemed like she was finally done with her task. Right as she was about to go however, she remembered that she had forgotten to look underneath the couches. Giving a loud sigh, she moved a nearby sofa from its place with her powers to expose the floor. The floor underneath it looked relatively clean, save for several old crumbs and a couple coins dotting the surface. However, lying there plain as a flare in the night was what looked like a large pad of paper.

Groaning and kneeling down, she gingerly grabbed the edge and picked it up from underneath the couch. It was indeed a pad of paper, obviously well-used judging by the state of it. It had a plain green and fairly unblemished cover, save for the words "Beast Boy's. Touch and die!!!" written across the front.

"Wow, I didn't know Beast Boy could write," Raven muttered sarcastically. She almost casually threw it on the changeling's pile of junk, but this time however, her curiosity got the better of her.

Raven examined the pad of paper, trying to figure out what it might have been. She guessed it might have been a journal of some kind, but then again, she didn't think Beast Boy even kept a journal, and the pad didn't even seem suited for that kind of purpose. Raven was suddenly overcome with the urge to open it and see what was inside.

"Looks like something private. I probably shouldn't," she said to herself. She didn't like people looking at her things, and it wouldn't be right for her to go rooting through someone else's. However, she could do little to fight the wave of curiosity sweeping over her.

Besides, it's not as if Beast Boy hadn't repeatedly gone touching her things without asking. If anything, he deserved a little payback for all the times he'd gone against her personal wishes.

"Why not? The guy's had it coming to him anyway," Raven said out loud.

The mage casually grabbed the cover and turned it. Her eyes widened as she saw what was on the first page. It was a drawing. And it wasn't just a doodle or a sketch; it was a real, full-fledged, realistic drawing.

It took her only a second to realize that the drawing was of Titan's Tower. The familiar T-shaped building was depicted overlooking the bay, light reflecting brilliantly off its large glass windows. In the background underneath a starry sky was the jagged outline of the cityscape. Judging by the moon and the stars etched into the sky, the picture was obviously meant to take place at night. Everything seemed drawn with special care to detail, right down to the waves crashing into the shoreline.

Raven was shocked. The drawing was…well, it was _good_. Having seen Beast Boy draw before, she had always thought he was only capable of little doodles characteristic of a kindergartener. Never had she thought he would be this talented at it. For a moment she entertained the thought that it wasn't Beast Boy's doing, but she highly doubted it.

Her curiosity growing, Raven turned the page again. As she expected, it was another drawing. This one however, was of a room – The Titan's garage. She saw all the usual equipment and hardware littering the place, with the T-Car standing out right in the middle. Raven looked and gave a soft, barely audible chuckle when she saw a pair of mechanical legs sticking out from underneath the vehicle, obviously Cyborg working on his 'baby'.

Raven flipped the page again. This one was of the training room, with all its weights, punching bags, and other equipment. She turned the page again, and saw what was undoubtedly Beast Boy's room, junk and all.

Raven was now enthralled, and kept turning page after page, eager to see what would come up next. Her eyes took in several more drawings of their home. Among them were drawings of the common room, the med bay, and more of the Tower itself.

As she progressed, the drawings changed from the Tower to other things. Raven soon came across several drawings of animals. Among them she spotted a tiger, a rhino, a wolf, a gorilla eating a banana, and others. Soon the drawings became more random and different, such as a picture of their favorite pizza place, the R-Cycle, the carnival, the game room, and others.

Raven was awestruck at how good they all were. Every single one was drawn with painstaking love and care, paying close attention to the smallest detail and capturing every scene perfectly. Heck, Raven didn't even think she could draw this well. None of them were colored in, either. Every one was drawn in simple black and white.

As she explored the pages, she came across a drawing that made her stop instantly. This one was unlike all the others. Before now, she hadn't come across any drawings of people. Now, she found herself looking at a picture of three people, none of whom she could recognize. In the drawing were three people: a man, a woman, and a little boy. Judging by the picture, Raven figured it must have been a couple and their child. It was almost like a photograph. All three of them were smiling and waving; the expression of simple, tender joy on all their faces. Raven tried to think of where she had seen them before, but nothing came up.

The man and the woman looked to be in their mid to early thirties, maybe even younger. What caught her attention the most though was the child in the middle. He looked rather young, no more than eight or nine years old. He had light-colored hair, possibly blonde judging from the shading. He had a wide smile on his face, and his eyes simply radiated happiness. The sight of him made Raven's mind wonder. He looked rather familiar, like she had seen that same expression before. In fact, as she looked at it, the face did seem rather familiar. It almost looked like…Beast Boy. Or at least, what Beast Boy would have looked like if he were a normal human being.

Raven paused and for a while couldn't stop staring at it. This picture especially seemed carefully done. Just the sight of it stirred strange feelings within her. For reasons she couldn't place, it made her sad. Finally she turned the page, and found another drawing, this one of the same family. Only this time, they were in a canoe in what appeared to be some kind of jungle setting.

Raven was so interested she hadn't noticed the sound of approaching footsteps. Only when the door to the room was opened did she finally snap out of her daydream. Caught off guard, Raven spun around with the pad of paper clutched to her chest. As luck would have it, Beast Boy was approaching her, scratching his head and looking rather concerned.

"Hey Raven, have you seen my…" his voice trailed off when he saw her clutching his sketchpad. For a while, the two just stared dumbly at each other, each one too shocked to speak.

Raven suddenly felt unbelievably stupid. She hoped to Azar she wasn't blushing, but the sudden warmth rushing into her cheeks told her she was. She wasn't alone, for Beast Boy's face had started turning a rosy shade of pink as well. The empath couldn't fight the feeling that she was a rather comical sight to behold. The normally dignified, stoic mage stood there like a child who had just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

"Um, yeah, that's it," Beast Boy said, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

After a moment of hesitation, Raven shyly handed him the sketchpad. Beast Boy promptly took it and clutched it to his chest, his blush growing. Raven opened her mouth to say something, but Beast Boy promptly walked past her and took off for his own room, leaving her feeling awkward and rather guilty. Sighing, she finally moved the couch back to its place and followed Beast Boy to his room.

"Beast Boy, are you there?" she asked as she softly knocked on his door. He didn't answer. Raven was about to knock again when Beast Boy's door slid open. There he stood, still red-faced and clutching the sketchpad. Raven tried to speak but found it incredibly difficult.

"I, I'm sorry," Raven finally said. Beast Boy looked up at her.

"Sorry for what?"

"For looking through your stuff," Raven said.

"Oh. Um, it's okay. I mean, I guess I had it coming after all the time I've touched your stuff." He forced a nervous chuckle.

"Still, I'm sorry," she said. That should have been the end, but the two still stood there looking at each other.

"Beast Boy, those are…_good_. You did all those?" she finally asked.

He nodded timidly. "Um, yeah."

"I, I didn't know you liked to draw," Raven said. "How come you don't color any of them?"

Beast Boy shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I used to do it a lot when I was younger. It sort of used to be a hobby of mine. And I guess I'm just too lazy to color, heh heh."

Raven looked at him curiously. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"I dunno. I just never saw a reason, I guess. I sort of wanted to keep it to myself, you know." At this, Raven felt even more ashamed for going through it, like she had read someone's private diary.

"I guess I just thought people would think I was stupid or nerdy and they wouldn't like them at all."

"Why? You're very good at it," Raven said.

"Really?" Beast Boy asked surprised. "Um, thanks. Thanks a lot."

"Sure." Raven looked at him sadly. "Beast Boy…were those your parents?"

The changeling's ears drooped, and he frowned sadly.

"You don't have to tell me," Raven quickly said.

"No, it's okay," he sighed. "Yeah, they were."

Raven looked at him in amazement. She suddenly realized she had never really bothered to consider Beast Boy's past. He already knew hers, but she really didn't know much about him. He had always just been Beast Boy, the comic relief. Nobody had really questioned him on his origins, especially her. Raven now felt as though she was looking at him in a new light. She thought she knew everything about him she needed to know, but apparently she still had a lot to learn.

"I'm sorry," Raven said. "I didn't know."

"It's okay," Beast Boy said. Even through his sadness he managed a weak smile. "I'm glad you like them."

"No problem."

"No really, it means a lot to me. Thanks." Raven nodded, managing a faint smirk. Beast Boy finally removed the sketchpad from off his chest and looked at it, smiling.

"There're still some things missing, though."

"Really? What?" she asked.

He looked up at her. "Pictures of you guys, of course."

Come to think of it, there really were no pictures of the Titans, except for one shot of Cyborg's legs.

"Why don't you have any?" Raven asked curiously.

"I've never really been that good at drawing people. I don't know why, I'm just not. I usually need to look at someone while I'm drawing it to do them well enough."

Raven nodded understandingly.

"Actually, I've been meaning to get some for some time, I just haven't gotten around to it," he said. "I was kind of afraid to ask."

"Well, you don't have to be. I don't think anyone would make fun of you," Raven said.

"Yeah, I guess," Beast Boy said quietly. Slowly the blush reappeared on his cheeks, and he looked up at Raven nervously.

"Um, Raven, would you…oh god, this is stupid."

"What?"

He rubbed the back of his neck nervously and sweat-dropped. "Would you um, mind if I drew you?"

It took Raven a moment to register what he had just said. When she had, she felt her blush returning full force.

"Um…I…" she stuttered. Beast Boy lowered his gaze timidly.

"I'm sorry. You don't have to if you don't want to," he said sadly. He turned to leave, but Raven stopped him.

"Wait!" she said. Beast Boy turned around and looked at her again with anticipation. Mustering as much grace as she could, Raven agreed.

"Uh, sure. I…I'd be happy to."

Beast Boy's expression brightened and his ears perked up. "Sweet! Are you done cleaning yet?" Raven nodded. "Alright!"

"Only," Raven looked around. "Let's go somewhere private."

"Right. Um, I don't think you'd wanna do it in my room. Got any ideas?"

Raven thought. Well, there was the roof, but there was still the chance someone would walk in on them.

"We could do it in my room," she said.

Beast Boy's eyes widened. "_Really?_ You mean it?"

Raven rolled her eyes. "Yes, Beast Boy. I mean it."

"Wow, okay. It's just that it is you're room, after all," he said sarcastically. "I mean, it is _private_. I wouldn't wanna break anything-"

Raven put a hand to his mouth. "Shut up and follow me." Beast Boy didn't argue. He eagerly followed the mage down the hall and into her dimly lit room. Beast Boy paused and looked around the room while Raven closed the door behind them and approached her bed.

"Just don't get used to this, Beast Boy," she said with mock sarcasm as she sat on her bed. The grass stain only smiled in response and took out a drawing pencil from the pad.

"Whatever you say, Raven."

She looked away, not believing she was about to do this. "What should I do?"

"Just stay still long enough while I draw you."

"Will this take long?"

"Um, it depends," Beast Boy said. Suddenly, an idea came to him and he snapped his fingers. "I know! You sit pretty still while you meditate. Why don't you just do that and I'll draw you? It won't take that long, and you won't even know I was drawing you."

Raven pondered it for a moment before agreeing. "Um, sure." Raven squatted down, trying hard to fight the blush on her cheeks. "But if you draw me in any embarrassing way, I will destroy you," she said with a smirk.

Off to the side, Beast Boy chuckled. "Don't worry." He turned to a fresh, clean sheet and readied his pencil as Raven slowly rose into the air. He took a look at her, and found one thing that needed changing.

"Hey Raven, could you um, remove your hood?" he asked quietly. Raven looked at him in shock. She hesitated for a moment, but then shyly reached up and pulled down her hood, exposing her face to him.

"Thanks."

Taking a breath, Raven closed her eyes and started chanting. Her body instinctively started winding down and she felt her mind slowly drift off, forgetting that she was still posing for Beast Boy. For the longest time, the only sound to be heard was her steady mantra and the sound of Beast Boy's pencil furiously working its way along the paper.

Before Raven knew it, a soft tapping on her shoulder awoke her from her trance. She blinked her eyes open to see Beast Boy smiling widely and holding his sketchpad proudly.

"All done!" he said cheerfully.

Raven blinked in surprise. It didn't feel like that much time had passed. Then again, that was often the case when she was meditating.

"How long has it been?" she asked.

"Oh, almost an hour and a half," he said. "So, um, you wanna see it?"

Raven got to her feet. "Sure." Beast Boy meekly flipped open the sketchpad and handed it to her. As Raven examined it, she found her mouth slowly drop open and her eyes widen.

It was a picture of her, as she expected, but it was _different_. For starters, the scene didn't take place in her room, but on top of a building that was obviously Titan's Tower. Behind her was the vast ocean extending to the horizon to meet a bright sunset. Wisps of cloud were etched into the sky, as well as a distant flock of birds. Below she could the waves or the ocean rolling their steady path toward the shore.

What shocked Raven the most though, was how he drew _her_. It did look exactly like her, that much was obvious. Her body was drawn in her usual meditative position, but there was something different. Instead of falling flat around her face, her hair gently curled up and to the side as if to depict a soft breeze blowing through it. Her eyes, though closed, seemed to almost have some kind of energy or sparkle behind them. Her mouth was open so as to show her chanting her mantra, but Raven could detect a faint, subtle smile playing on her lips. Overall, she seemed more feminine, and definitely livelier then she had typically envisioned herself.

This was how he saw her? Raven, for the third time, felt herself blush intensely. Well, she had already swallowed her pride by letting him draw her. It didn't make much difference now.

Beast Boy again rubbed the back of his neck. "So, um, you like it?"

Raven was still too shocked for words as she looked at the drawing of herself. She tried to talk, but couldn't find her words. "I, uh…"

Beast Boy took this the wrong way, and lowered his head in shame. "Sorry. If you don't like it,-"

He was cut off when he felt Raven cup his chin and lift his head to meet her gaze. To his utter surprise, he found her blushing, and of all things, _smiling!_ And it wasn't just a faint smirk, it was a real, genuine, warm-hearted smile. Raven's smile. All at once he felt like his heart was melting as yet another blush worked its way across his cheeks.

"I think it's perfect," she said softly.

* * *

Soooo, how'd you like it? Fluff okay:) Please read and review! 


End file.
